Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies greatly, depending on the size of the organism, the environment in which it lives and its evolutionary ...
The respiratory tract is the subdivision of the respiratory system involved with the process of conducting air to the alveoli for the purposes of gas exchange in mammals. [1] The respiratory tract is lined with respiratory epithelium as respiratory mucosa.
Their function in the respiratory system is to extract oxygen from the atmosphere and transfer it into the bloodstream, and to release carbon dioxide from the bloodstream into the atmosphere, in a process of gas exchange. Respiration is driven by different muscular systems in different species.
Dorsal respiratory group – in the medulla; Ventral respiratory group – in the medulla; Pneumotaxic center – various nuclei of the pons; Apneustic center – nucleus of the pons; From the respiratory center, the muscles of respiration, in particular the diaphragm, [4] are activated to cause air to move in and out of the lungs.
The breathing of all vertebrates with lungs consists of repetitive cycles of inhalation and exhalation through a highly branched system of tubes or airways which lead from the nose to the alveoli. [4] The number of respiratory cycles per minute is the breathing or respiratory rate, and is one of the four primary vital signs of life. [5]
A bronchus (/ ˈ b r ɒ ŋ k ə s / BRONG-kəs; pl.: bronchi, / ˈ b r ɒ ŋ k aɪ / BRONG-ky) is a passage or airway in the lower respiratory tract that conducts air into the lungs.The first or primary bronchi to branch from the trachea at the carina are the right main bronchus and the left main bronchus.
The nasal cavity is the uppermost part of the respiratory system and provides the nasal passage for inhaled air from the nostrils to the nasopharynx and rest of the respiratory tract. The paranasal sinuses surround and drain into the nasal cavity.
Mucus is produced continuously in the respiratory tract. Mucociliary action carries it down from the nasal passages and up from the rest of the tract to the pharynx, with most of it being swallowed subconsciously. Sometimes in times of respiratory illness or inflammation, mucus can become thickened with cell debris, bacteria, and inflammatory ...